Winning Eleven 8: Hands-on

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Konami's world-beating soccer game arrives in stellar fashion. New screens, movies, and impressions.

By Douglass C. Perry

The best soccer game in the world has finally found its way back to the good ol' US of A (or what we used to call the good ol' USA). We understand that Japan, where the game is made, should be the first to receive the latest iteration. And that Europe, which is collectively crazy about the sport, gets it second. We get most things first, so we have little to complain about. But it's not as if us Yankees don't love the superbly entertaining sport of soccer. It's just that, somehow, those other sports, the big three -- baseball, football and basketball&#Array;OK, four, hockey -- really have the majority of the sports fans' attention (and the networks' money). It doesn't really seem right, either, since soccer, i.e. football or futball, is the predominant world sport. Maybe it's the low scoring games, the lack of hand work, or the simple fact there are no cheerleaders to get us through a tough loss. It's tough to say&#Array;

But Konami keeps coming back with newer, prettier, and better versions of its world-class soccer game, and whether we receive it first, second, or last, it doesn't matter as long as we get it. Over the last five years, Konami has fiddled with the American version, trying different things and finally in the last three years, nailing what is genuinely considered the world's greatest soccer game (though we haven't forgotten ESPN MLS Extra Time, which stunk.) In particular, the last two versions have been outstanding with this year's version looking to outrank them all. Winning Eleven 8, due on February 1 on Xbox, PlayStation 2, and PC in the US, is a champion of soccer games. It's beautiful, filled with highly polished gameplay, exquisitely subtle and realistic moves, and state-of-the-art animations. If you even sort of like soccer and fancy yourself a competitor, you owe it to yourself to play this beauty.

This year's model comes complete with another set of significant improvements in all areas, the most obvious being presentation, one of Konami TYO's traditionally weak areas. The game now presents itself with more visual flair, a better set of menus to toggle through, and a logical system that's not bogged down in redundant or cumbersome menus, pages, and text-heavy sections. You're now able to quickly and clearly select teams, change formations, substitute players, and then sit back and absorb the lengthy opening game presentations.

That's a big time foul.

On the feature side, Winning Eleven 8 has returned with familiar themes. You can play in an Exhibition Match, enter the Master League, play in the League, complete in a Cup, Edit your teams or players, or jump into a lengthy Training session (which is further enhanced in this year's version). All modes are presented with more visual information this time around, and the game is laid out with a fully visual presentation in mind. In the Master League it seems to make the biggest difference. You pick a team, a league, and as you progress you'll be given all sorts of options ranging from rules, conditions, WEFA rankings, and more.

Check the improved functionality.

Before your first game, you can go to the locker room to discuss strategies, check the trade market, practice on the next field to assess it, check out players' rising or falling skills, edit your team, or fool around with general settings before actually playing. Of course, if you just want to let her rip and play, there's an option for that too. You can check your funds, team salary, and the other teams' standings. One new feature, called "My Best Eleven," offers players the ability to save their best teams for later use.

Following its annual goal to improve, refine, and broaden its game, Konami TYO has once again acquired new official teams and players. This is always important, given EA's ridiculously license-heavy FIFA, which incidentally contains more licenses in that one game than all EA sports games combined. Anyway, Winning Eleven 8 features 136 clubs, 57 teams, and 4,500 soccer players.